America booms in both population and prosperity. Television brings the world into Americans' living rooms, changing lives and values in unexpected ways. The boom of the 1980s heralds better times, along with a sense of assurance that mirrors the 1920s. The credit card shapes the decade and spurs spending, creating new affluent classes. America reaches once more for the stars and launches the Shuttle into space. A new California Gold Rush ensues when innovation yields the biggest technological advances--the computer and the internet. America's confidence is rocked by 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina, but the country remains the world's superpower. less